9 US Politicians Who Speak A Foreign Language

The relationship between American politics and foreign language isn’t a particularly close one. In fact, we haven’t elected a truly bilingual president in 84 years (Franklin D. Roosevelt, who spoke German and French). Sometimes politicians will try their hand at speaking a foreign language to appeal to a specific voter base or showcase their “multiculturalism,” but it often backfires. One memorable example is when New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg attempted to speak Spanish in the aftermath of Hurricane Irene in 2011. His Spanish was so rough, it inspired the satirical Twitter account @ElBloombito.

There are a handful of United States politicians, however, who are proficient or fluent in at least one foreign language. Here are nine of the most notable politicians.

Bill Clinton — German

In 1994, President Bill Clinton walked through the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin and made a speech to the German people, praising the emergence of the European Union. At the end of the speech, Clinton delivered a few lines in German: “Nichts wird uns aufhalten. Alles ist moeglich. Berlin ist frei.” (“Nothing will stop us. Everything is possible. Berlin is free.”)

Backing up a few decades, Clinton studied German when he was a student at Georgetown University. In his book My Life: The Early Years, he writes that he chose German because he “was interested in the country and impressed by the clarity and precision of the language.”

Marco Rubio — Spanish

U.S Senator Marco Rubio of Florida was born in Miami to Cuban immigrant parents. He grew up in a Spanish-speaking household and is completely bilingual. In 2013, Rubio delivered the Republican response to President Obama’s State of the Union address in both English and Spanish, marking the first time the response was delivered in two languages by the same person.

During a Republican presidential debate in February 2016, Rubio called out Senator Ted Cruz of Texas for his inability to speak Spanish. Cruz was criticizing Rubio for something he said on Univision, to which Rubio replied, “Well, first of all, I don’t know how he knows what I said on Univision because he doesn’t speak Spanish.” Cruz tried to respond in Spanish, but it didn’t go so well.

Mitt Romney — French

Apparently, the ability to speak French can be viewed as a negative attribute in a U.S. presidential candidate. At least, that’s how it seemed during the 2012 election cycle, when former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich released an attack ad against former governor of Massachusetts and fellow presidential candidate Mitt Romney, criticizing Romney for his French skills.

The video above shows Romney speaking French while promoting the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics. In the 1960s, Romney lived in France for two and a half years on a Mormon mission trip, which is where he picked up the language.

Jon Huntsman — Mandarin Chinese

You may not remember Jon Huntsman from his 2012 presidential bid, but he’s played a major role in American politics since the ’90s. He’s served as governor of Utah and U.S. Ambassador to China and Singapore, and he’s currently the U.S. Ambassador to Russia.

Like Romney, Huntsman learned his foreign language as a Mormon missionary. He went on a mission trip to Taiwan when he was 19 and learned Mandarin Chinese. Huntsman has continued to speak Mandarin throughout his career as an international diplomat. During one of the presidential debates, he broke out his Mandarin skills, which led to criticism from fellow Republicans.

Condoleezza Rice — Russian

Former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice studied Russian when she was in college at the University of Denver. At the time, she was so enthralled with Russian culture, she named her car after her favorite Russian opera, Boris Godunov. She continued her studies of the Russian language at Moscow State University in the summer of 1979. In her bookExtraordinary, Ordinary People: A Memoir of Family, she refers to herself at that point in her life as “a budding Soviet specialist.”

Rice rarely uses her language skills in public, but the video above shows an interview she did with a Russian radio station in 2005.

John Kerry — French

Former Senator for Massachusetts John Kerry, who served as U.S. Secretary of State under President Obama, attended a Swiss boarding school as a child while his father served in the diplomatic service in Berlin. During his time in Switzerland, Kerry learned to speak French fluently.

On the campaign trail in 2014, Kerry was often attacked for his connections with France, including his ability to speak the language and the fact that he has a French cousin. In 2016, Kerry was presented with the Legion d’Honneur, France’s highest honor. French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said the following when he gave Kerry the award: “Francophone, Francophile, you are certainly the most French of American officials.”

Tim Kaine — Spanish

Hillary Clinton’s 2016 vice presidential candidate, U.S. Senator for Virginia Tim Kaine, took a year off from Harvard Law School when he was 22 to join a Jesuit mission in Honduras. He was questioning his faith and what he wanted to do with his life, and he was hoping the trip would help him find himself. He says his time in Honduras inspired him to enter a life of public service. It’s also where he became fluent in Spanish.

In 2013, Kaine became the first senator to give an entire speech in Spanish. In the speech, he argued for immigration reform proposed by the bipartisan group known as the Gang of Eight. Kaine’s ability to speak Spanish was seen as a way to woo Hispanic voters, but instead came across as a cop out because Kaine was chosen over all of the Latino politicians being considered for the Democratic ticket.

Madeleine Albright — Czech, Russian And French

There are a lot of details you may not know about Madeleine Albright, the first woman to serve as U.S. Secretary of State. For starters, Madeleine’s not her real name — it’s Marie. She was born in Prague and grew up speaking Czech, but the story goes that when she was studying French, Albright decided she liked the name Madeleine better than Marie. When she was young, her family lived in London for a period, and they eventually emigrated to the United States in 1948.

When she was in her twenties, Albright gave birth to a set of premature twins. They were severely underweight and had to be kept in incubators, so to occupy her time, Albright enrolled in a Russian-language course. Later, she studied Russian and International Relations at Johns Hopkins University. The video above shows an interview Albright gave to Czech TV.

Jeb Bush — Spanish

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush met his wife, Columba, when he was on a high school trip to Mexico. In a 2015 interview with Telemundo, Bush said this about his family life: “We speak Spanish at home. We eat Mexican food at home. Our children are Hispanic.” In the same interview, Bush said he really likes Cuban-American rapper Pitbull.

Bush used his Spanish skills during the 2016 election cycle to distance himself from then-candidate Donald Trump’s anti-Mexican rhetoric. Trump, in turn, criticized Bush for speaking Spanish on the campaign trail. Bush responded, “I’m going to campaign in the Latino communities and yes, Mr. Trump, if I’m asked a question in Spanish, I might answer in Spanish. I apologize.”

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Dylan is Babbel USA’s senior content producer. He studied journalism at Ithaca College and previously managed social media for CBS Evening News. He’s currently pursuing his MBA part-time at NYU Stern. His interests include podcasts, puppies, politics, alliteration, reading, writing, and dessert. Dylan lives in New York City.

Dylan is Babbel USA’s senior content producer. He studied journalism at Ithaca College and previously managed social media for CBS Evening News. He’s currently pursuing his MBA part-time at NYU Stern. His interests include podcasts, puppies, politics, alliteration, reading, writing, and dessert. Dylan lives in New York City.